2015

Virxilio Vieitez

A retrospect of the work of the Galician photographer that includes his best known work and also some previously unpublished pieces

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December 10, 2015 - February 7, 2016

Museum of Pontevedra. Spain

The exhibition, co-produced by Fundación Telefónica and the art museum MARCO in Vigo, comprises over 250 colour and B/W photographs, the result of the research efforts of the exhibition curator, Enrica Viaganó. Over 50,000 negatives from between 1953 and 1980 have been reviewed for this anthology, all from the personal archives of the photographer, preserved by his daughter Keta Vieitez. Materials that have never been seen before have been recovered, such as sealed boxes, and cans with metres of film which had never been printed after its first use, that is, after the assignment from the client at the time.

This selection includes his most renowned works, but also unpublished works, including colour and vintage photos. The selected works bear witness to Vieitez’s unique way of looking at things, a photographer with a one-of-a-kind ability to make everyday images striking, solemn and intense, stripped of any kind of artifice. While most of his work is characterized by the inscrutable postures of the subjects, the rigid frontality in their poses and the intense gazes, their eyes looking straight ahead,, the spectator discovers more relatable, sometimes even comical, scenes, dynamic snapshots of relaxed moments. ID Card photos, depictions of children in their Sunday clothes showing off toys, old men and women whose faces bear the marks of a life of hardship, weddings, family gatherings (happy and sad)… a comprehensive record of everyday life in the villages of the Terra de Montes region.

In addition, original material from Vieitez’s studio will be on display: vintage material from the era, cameras, film, personal effects of the photographer, stamps, etc., and a documentary will be shown: Virxilio Vieitez. Más allá del oficio (Beyond the Trade) produced byLópez-Li FILMS.

Finally, at the Espacio Fundación Telefónica information desk, you will be able to request one of the multimedia guides, covering a selection of pieces with commentary and testimonies from some of the people portrayed. This guide also offers a special tour for children, accompanied by adults.